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The Senate proposal to boost annual salaries for Texas public school teachers by $5,000 a year could hit a hiccup in the Texas House.

AUSTIN — The proposal unveiled by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to boost annual salaries for Texas public school teachers by $5,000 a year could hit a hiccup in the Texas House.

New House Speaker Dennis Bonnen said Wednesday he supports boosting teachers' pay as part of a far-reaching plan to overhaul the way the state pays for education. But the Senate plan announced a day earlier by the lieutenant governor, who leads the Senate, might need some tinkering, the speaker said.

"I think the opportunity to show teachers how we appreciate them here in Texas is realistic," Bonnen told reporters after Wednesday's House floor session. "Personally, I think were a little bit better off giving our local school districts those dollars and the discretion to manage their own salaries and the pay of their teachers there. But I'm very appreciative of what the Senate has done.

House Speaker Dennis Bonnen speaks with reporters after the floor session on Jan. 16, 2019.(Photo: John C. Moritz/USA Today Network)

Senate Bill 3 provides the raise

Patrick boasted during his inauguration speech heading into his second term that Senate Finance Committee Chairwoman Jane Nelson had just filed legislation that would lock in the $5,000 raise for teachers.

The money, under Senate Bill 3, would come from the state and be passed to local districts to provide the raises for the 350,000 teachers in Texas public schools.

In a statement, Nelson said she wanted to make clear teachers wouldn't be left behind as lawmakers seek to reduce local school property taxes and have the state pick up more the share for public education.

"The most important investment we can make in education is in our teachers," Nelson said. "They are the key factor in preparing our students for success. Teaching has always been a labor of love, but we need to elevate the profession, recruit the best and brightest to the classrooms and compensate our teachers for the critical role they play in shaping the future of Texas."

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, encourages Oliver White (left), 10, while Callyn McCain, 10, works on a writing project on Monday, September 17, 2018."In the morning I get up with hopes of making a difference in the lives of a child. Knowing that they're going to come to me and they don't want to be at school most of them, but I want them to know they have a safe place to go with someone who cares about them and wants them to learn," she said.(Photo: Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times)

Teachers embrace the plan, in principle

The proposal was warmly received by representatives of public school teachers, who sometimes have conflicting agendas with the state's Republican leadership.

"Provided it is a permanent, across-the-board raise for all teachers – and it looks like it is – we believe it is a good start toward closing the gap between average teacher pay in Texas and the national average," said Clay Robison, a spokesman for the Texas State Teachers Association.

Robison said the average teacher pay in Texas is about $7,300 less than the national average, based on 2017-18 salaries. He cited a state-by-state analysis by the National Education Association that shows the average teacher salary in Texas during the 2017-2018 school year was $53,167.

Broad consensus for school finance reform

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, along with Bonnen and Patrick, said lawmakers this year will fix what has been described as a badly flawed system for meeting the state's constitutional obligation to provide a proper education at public expense.

The 140-day legislation is just over a week old, but each legislative chamber has already filed proposed budgets for members to begin working on over the coming four and a half months.

The House plan would plow some $9 billion in new money for public schools. The Senate's starting point is more than $4 billion. Typically, the baseline budgets are combed over by lawmakers, with input from myriad interest groups, during the course of a legislative session.

What's next?

It is not unusual for the final product to differ sharply from the original drafts.

During his brief chat with reporters, Bonnen sought to emphasize that in the grand scheme, the House and Senate are roughly on the same page as the session gets under way.

"Many of you are probably going to want to talk about what the differences are," said Bonnen, who is beginning his first term at the helm of the House. "I think what's more positive is what the similarities are. We're all in the right boat together. We're all saying (we want) additional funds for education.

"We're all saying we want teachers to get more money in their paychecks."

John C. Moritz covers Texas government and politics for the USA Today Network in Austin. Contact him at John.Moritz@caller.com and follow him on Twitter @JohnnieMo.

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Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, encourages Oliver White (left), 10, while Callyn McCain, 10, works on a writing project on Monday, September 17, 2018."In the morning I get up with hopes of making a difference in the lives of a child. Knowing that they're going to come to me and they don't want to be at school most of them, but I want them to know they have a safe place to go with someone who cares about them and wants them to learn, she said." Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, reads a story to her class on Monday, September 17, 2018. Her love of reading is one thing that made her want to become a teacher. "I read all day long with kids and I really like to share the love and the stories of reading," she said. We live in a community that's a high poverty area and many of my students have never been out of the South Texas area. Reading takes you places you otherwise wouldn't be able to go." Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, drops her class off at PE before returning to her class to meet with other fifth grade teachers to plan on Monday, September 17, 2018. "I wish I had more time to plan lessons that were more engaging for students," she said. "I feel like we work real hard to find good lessons but then we find that we run out of time." Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, plans with other fifth grade teachers on Monday, September 17, 2018. "I wish I had more time to plan lessons that were more engaging for students," she said. "I feel like we work real hard to find good lessons but then we find that we run out of time." Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, waits for students to regain control before she continues her lesson on Monday, September 17, 2018. "A classroom is full of students from one end of the educational spectrum to the other and you have to accommodate those needs for all of those students all day long," McFarland said. Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, monitors students during recess indoors on Monday, September 17, 2018. "I think a lot of times students don't respect teachers, they don't see us as authority figures," she said. Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, checks to make sure students are on-task on Monday, September 17, 2018. "Teaching is a hard job, like I said it's a juggling act," she said. "You are constantly juggling from one subject to the next. To planning, to after-school functions, to individual student needs. And, itâ€™s a tough job. And you have to be here for the right reasons." Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, listens as a student reads her assignment on Monday, September 17, 2018. "In the morning I get up with hopes of making a difference in the lives of a child. Knowing that they're going to come to me and they don't want to be at school most of them, but I want them to know they have a safe place to go with someone who cares about them and wants them to learn, she said." Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, rubs her neck as she waits for a customer to check out at H-E-B, a grocery store, on Monday, September 17, 2018. Three years ago, she said she applied for free or reduced lunch for her son. "I'm a teacher. And I qualified for reduced lunch. What does that say?" Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, rubs her neck as she waits for a customer to check out at H-E-B, a grocery store, on Monday, September 17, 2018. "Almost every single teacher that I know has some kind of a side gig," she said. "They either sell some kind of product out of their home, or babysit on the side, keep kids after school, or work on the weekends. If it's a single teacher, they just cannot make it on the income that we're afforded." Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, rubs her neck as she waits for a customer to check out at H-E-B, a grocery store, on Monday, September 17, 2018. "Almost every single teacher that I know has some kind of a side gig," she said. "They either sell some kind of product out of their home, or babysit on the side, keep kids after school, or work on the weekends. If it's a single teacher, they just cannot make it on the income that we're afforded." Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, rubs her neck as she waits for a customer to check out at H-E-B, a grocery store, on Monday, September 17, 2018. Three years ago, she said she applied for free or reduced lunch for her son. "I'm a teacher. And I qualified for reduced lunch. What does that say?" Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Christine Kidd McFarland, a fifth-grade teacher at Sinton Elementary School in Sinton, Texas, grades papers at her home on October 8, 2018. She left teaching at one point and took a $30,000 pay cut to return. "Teaching is a hard job," she said. "And you have to be here for the right reasons." Rachel Denny Clow/Corpus Christi Caller-Times

Angel Flores-Cano, a kindergarten teacher at Galvan Elementary School in Corpus Christi, TX, plans for a department meeting while also responding to parent messages at her home on September 26, 2018. The teacher in the Corpus Christi Independent School District delivers groceries with Shipt in order to help make ends meet. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times

Angel Flores-Cano, a kindergarten teacher at Galvan Elementary School in Corpus Christi, TX, plans for a department meeting while also responding to parent messages at her home on September 26, 2018. The teacher in the Corpus Christi Independent School District delivers groceries with Shipt in order to help make ends meet. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times

Angel Flores-Cano inputs grades for the end of the grading period while watching football with her husband, Jesse Cano, on October 7, 2018. A kindergarten teacher at Galvan Elementary School in Corpus Christi, TX, Flores-Cano delivers groceries with Shipt in order to help make ends meet. On average, Texas teachers earned $52,575 - roughly $7,085 below the national average. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times

Angel Flores-Cano inputs grades for the end of the grading period while watching football with her husband, Jesse Cano, on October 7, 2018. A kindergarten teacher at Galvan Elementary School in Corpus Christi, TX, Flores-Cano delivers groceries with Shipt in order to help make ends meet. On average, Texas teachers earned $52,575 - roughly $7,085 below the national average. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times

Angel Flores-Cano attends a King High School junior varsity football game at Moody High School on September 27, 2018. A kindergarten teacher at Galvan Elementary School in Corpus Christi, TX, Flores-Cano delivers groceries with Shipt in order to help make ends meet. She averages 12 to 15 hours per week delivering groceries. Texas ranked 28th in the nation for teacher pay for the 2016-17 school year. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times

Richard Perales (from left), J.J. Flores and Angel Flores-Cano attend a King High School junior varsity football game at Moody High School on September 27, 2018. A kindergarten teacher at Galvan Elementary School in Corpus Christi, TX, Flores-Cano delivers groceries with Shipt in order to help make ends meet. She averages 12 to 15 hours per week delivering groceries. Texas ranked 28th in the nation for teacher pay for the 2016-17 school year. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times

Estella Camacho helps a customer at the Christus Spohn Hospital South gift shop on September 27, 2018. A kindergarten teacher at Yeager Elementary School in the Corpus Christi Independent School District, she works as much as 20 hours a week at the gift shop to help pay for essentials her family needs. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times

Estella Camacho works at the Christus Spohn Hospital South gift shop on September 27, 2018. A kindergarten teacher at Yeager Elementary School in the Corpus Christi Independent School District, she works as much as 20 hours a week at the gift shop to help pay for essentials her family needs. On average, Texas teachers earned $52,575 - roughly $7,085 below the national average. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times

Estella Camacho works at the Christus Spohn Hospital South gift shop on September 27, 2018. A kindergarten teacher at Yeager Elementary School in the Corpus Christi Independent School District, she works as much as 20 hours a week at the gift shop to help pay for essentials her family needs. On average, Texas teachers earned $52,575 - roughly $7,085 below the national average. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times